When I worked for my last fashion design job, most of our trims and embellishments were brought to us on trim cards, all neatly laid with lists of color options. We would call our own in-house trim department to bring us several options of any trim we had our heart set on and in a weeks time, we would get an abundance of trims to choose from; from photos to real trims brought to us.
It was just as simple as a phone call or an email.
Having my own company presents its own set of challenges in sourcing as I don't have my own trim department and not everything is brought to me on a color card. Instead, I do my own shopping, locally and at trade shows, finding the right companies to work with that have the best quality and selection.
It's fun to pick out my own crystals and inspect them myself as each crystal is truly unique and one of a kind. It's like picking out a diamond, you're looking for cut, clarity and carat. For me designing and creating a product is about the process, always striving to continually perfect my craft.
And because of this, I find I am very attached to most of my work because I know the story of how I bought each crystal and where it came from.
